A new clue as to the evolution and eventual extinction of dinosaurs has been found in the form of a 250-million-year-old fossil skull discovered in southern Brazil. Paleontologists believe that the ancient crocodile-like reptile, Teyujagua paradoxa, will provide valuable clues to the secrets of dinosaurs. The word Teyujagua comes from Teyu Yagua, which means a “fierce lizard” in the local Guarani indigenous language, a mythical creature that looked like a reptile with a dog’s head.
A study related to the discovery was published in Scientific Reports this week which gives details of the new lizard. The Teyujagua paradoxa grew up to 5 feet long and had four legs. Paleontologists are fascinated by the newly discovered skull, which has transitional characteristics such as serrated teeth which would eventually lead to the evolution of the Tyrannosaurus Rex. The nostrils were on the upper part of the snout, similar to the modern day crocodile.
The new animal survived the “Great Dying” of about 250 million years ago that was mostly likely caused by atmospheric changes resulting from volcanic eruptions, an event that wiped out 90 percent of the species on earth.
The skull is expected to help scientists understand the evolution of reptiles to dinosaurs, as well as crocodiles and birds. It has distinct differences from fossils of similar age that have previously been found.University of Birmingham’s Dr. Richard Butler says the discovery is really important because “it helps us understand the origins of a diverse group of vertebrates called archosauriforms.”
Teyujagua’s anatomy is somewhere between more primitive reptiles and “archosauriforms,” which include all extinct pterosaurs and dinosaurs, as well as modern day crocodiles and birds.
Although its skull does not actually look like a dog, it likely roamed much of the same land as the mythical “fierce lizard.” Felipe Pinheiro, from Universidad Federal do Pampa, Sao Gabriel, Rio Grande do sul, says the discovery of Teyujagua’s skull is very exciting. “Ever since we saw that beautiful skull for the first time in the field, still mostly covered by rocks, we knew we had something extraordinary in our hands.”
The skull was found early this year near the city of Sao Francisco de Assis. It was discovered in an area of exposed Triassic rock. Scientists think the creature probably lived in the margins of rivers and lakes where it hunted amphibians and procolophonids, small reptiles similar to lizards which are now extinct.
Butler says “Teyujagua fills an evolutionary gap between archosauriforms and more primitive reptiles and helps us understand how the archosauriform skull first evolved.”